Carbon fiber handle wrap

[quang tran]

Anyone use carbon fiber wrap around cork or form to made rod grips ?

[oc1]

I've done that when trying my hand at scratch-made rods.  Trying to wrap a round tapered shape with a flat sheet of carbon fiber weave will be difficult.  There will be folds that cannot be hidden to get a uniform look. 

You should consider getting some carbon fiber tow in a 1/4" ribbon.  You can wrap the ribbon on the foam/cork; sort of like doing diamond threadwork on the blank.

Carbon fiber is a bit-ch to "wet out" with resin.  The seizing stuff they put on it to keep it from being fuzzy is difficult to penetrate.  So, it's best to soak the tow or woven sheet in resin before wrapping it around the foam/cork.

[quang tran]

Using carbon fiber fabric  is very difficult unless we make handle same diameter as a tube . There is carbon fiber sleeve that we can put over  cord or form handle that way it will wrap around even . I have not make any yet but will soon doing that
https://www.ebay.com/str/elitemotoring?_trksid=p4429486.m3561.l161211

[quang tran]

This one is 1.5 in dia. max ,we can pull out to make smaller dia . I think they use this to make carbon fiber grips ,pre made
https://www.ebay.com/itm/134922945736?itmmeta=01KBWS5QD8GQ61QSXPCJT6NM53&hash=item1f6a08c4c8:g:mcIAAOSw61dlwTIA

[oc1]

That's a good plan.

[jurelometer]

There are some tutorials out there for  using CF sleeves to make rod grips, but now that premade grips of this type are widely available, DIY is not as  popular. But some still do it so that they can get the exact size and shape that they want.

Cork is not an ideal substrate for this process as it is too elastic. It will flex with the blank.  These stresses can lead to cracking or delamination. Normally, a hard stiff foam is used under the CF.

I am not personally a fan of CF grips.  They completely stiffen the rod along their length (preventing the blank from bending), are slippery if they get any thing wet or slimy on them, and unlike cork or EVA foam, can't absorb moisture- so they get slippery or at least unpleasant when you are fishing in hot weather. They also have no compression.  I prefer a little bit of elasticity in my grips, especially for higher line class rods.

The positives are that when made with foam, these grips are very light and transfer vibration well. Some folk like the look of them too.

My opinion is that the smaller the line class and the faster  action of the blank, and the colder the weather that you fish in, the greater the chance that you might like them.

If you build some, let us know how they turn out, and whether you like fishing with them.

-J

[quang tran]

I agree that cord is best material for rod grip . I will continue using cord but my kids like carbon fiber grip because how it looks and easy to clean , won't get fish slime absorbed ,they only complain it won't last that why I think about wrap cord or EV up with carbon fiber . I have a few cord grip that I use  Polyurethanes it become slippery but very durable

[jurelometer]

Here is a tutorial on DIY CF:

https://mudhole.com/en-ca/blogs/product-reviews/how-to-build-diy-carbon-fiber-fishing-grips

The deckhand style cord grips that we use out here on the west coast are quite grippy and durable.  I have only done a few with a thin epoxy coat, but urethane is also used. mine are easy to de-slime and quite grippy, but it is a bit hard to get all of the salt out.  Out here, we  typically use 1/8" nylon cord- Atwood is a popular brand. 

Here is one of my cord wraps .  It is about 10 years old, and has been fished quite a bit.



Another option to consider are those flocked surface heat shrink tubes. They can go right over foam, cork, cord, etc.

-J

[quang tran]

same material Mudhole sell higher price